Sophia Wyatt, 44, lost both her legs to meningitis when she was only 16 years old.

Sophia posted on the internet her hospital photos of her fingers and toes blackened with sepsis and her legs turning dark purple before they were amputated in January 1993. Her post said, “I don’t like to be reminded of what I saw, what I smelt and what I was forced to deal with the day I awoke from a coma. ‘Even now 26 years on I can’t look at myself in a mirror without my prosthetic legs on. I can’t face the reality of what meningitis and sepsis did to my body”.

She was motivated to share her story and urges people not to refuse vaccinations. A meningococcal meningitis vaccine was made available in 2015. Chief executive of Meningitis Now, Dr Tom Nutt said, “Meningitis is a devastating disease but there are vaccines that will protect against it and a world-leading vaccination programme here in the UK. We’d encourage everyone who can to take the simple steps necessary to protect themselves and their family”.

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